Dodd has 'itch' for presidency

News-Times, The (Danbury, CT), Fred Lucas THE NEWS-TIMES

Published 1:00 am, Sunday, April 9, 2006

Connecticut is now waiting to see if U.S. Sen. Christopher Dodd scratches his itch in 2008.

The Democratic senator made news last week when he told
the Associated Press
he might consider a White House run.
"It's an itch," he said of running for president. "Could grow. Could disappear. It's an itch."
Some
Democrats
and political experts say they think Dodd, 61, a former
Democratic National Committee
chairman, could be a viable candidate - perhaps even a top-tier candidate - if he takes part in the Democratic primaries that start in less than two years.
"He is vastly respected by his Democratic colleagues in the Senate and has a network of friends and supporters all around the country," said

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James Maloney
of Danbury, a former Democratic U.S. representative in the 5th District.
"He is very articulate and knows how to deliver a message," Maloney continued. "He knows the party structure and its activists. He took the party chairmanship at a difficult time and won back a number of seats in Congress."
Dodd, who is bilingual and considered an expert on Latin American issues, has appeal in the country's Hispanic community, said Maloney. Dodd also has been critical of the execution of the war in Iraq and has been an advocate for health care and education issues, Maloney said.
Maloney noted there is one big hurdle for Dodd or any other candidate - raising enough money and gaining enough early support to beat the presumed Democratic front-runner, New York Sen.
Hillary Clinton
.
Dodd could not personally comment on a potential candidacy Thursday or Friday, but his office issued a statement.
"Senator Dodd is interested in one thing: working for the people of Connecticut," spokeswoman
Stacie Paxton
said in the statement. "People love to speculate about this stuff but Senator Dodd's sole focus is Connecticut and fighting for the issues important to our state and nation. This is much ado about nothing."
Dodd, who is generally considered a liberal, is certainly more in step with his party than the last Connecticut senator to run for president.
Joseph Lieberman
, a moderate, lagged far behind in the 2004 primaries, dogged by his support of the war in Iraq. Dodd also voted for the war. But he now says he would have voted differently had he known no weapons of mass destruction were not in the country.
Richard Foley
of Danbury, a former state representative and chairman of the
Connecticut Republican Party
, said its far-fetched to think Dodd could win the presidency.
"He's been locked in the (Democratic) minority in the Senate for 12 years, and now he feels all dressed up and no place to go," Foley said. "It's delusional. It's not because he's not a nice guy. The theory of how this thing is supposed to happen is mind-boggling. Where's he going to get an extra $100 million from to beat Hillary?"
Still, Foley said, a Dodd candidacy would be taken seriously, partly because of his role in the Senate and partly because he once served as chairman of the Democratic National Committee.
But he said that respect wouldn't translate into popular support at the polls in New Hampshire, site of the first primary, and elsewhere.
"He was DNC chairman, so he has a Rolodex to consult and call any 10 (important Democrats) in New Hampshire for support. If that is his only blessing, he's in trouble," Foley said. "The Senate is replete with people who think they should be or could be president. It usually does not more than get them on morning TV shows and give them a middle aged ego boost."
Dodd will likely wait to see how this year's congressional elections go before deciding, said
Scott McClean
, political science professor at
Quinnipiac University
. Dodd is not up for reelection, but if Democrats regain control of Congress that might indicate that the country might accept a more liberal president.
"He's playing the flirting game to find if there is positive reaction out there," McClean said. After Massachusetts Sen.
John Kerry
lost in 2004, "I think Democrats are leery of nominating another northeastern liberal from a small state. That doesn't mean Dodd shouldn't run. He has name recognition and looks like a president."
Jim Dean
of Fairfield, chairman of the liberal group Democracy for America, said he doesn't want to see the Democratic nomination handed to any candidate. He said Clinton's support for an increasingly unpopular war may make her vulnerable in the quest for the nomination.
"At the end of the day, voters want to see someone with authority and passion," said Dean, brother of former presidential candidate
Howard Dean
. "We've not seen that in a Democrat in a while."
If Clinton stumbles, Dodd could be nominated, said
Gary Rose
, a political science professor at
Sacred Heart University
. The problem is that he might be too far to the left to be electable in the general election.
"Lieberman couldn't get to first base with his party" because of some of his conservative views, Rose said. "Dodd is in line with the party and may be in line with the country on Iraq. I would venture to say (Dodd) is a long shot, but not as long as some others. He would be among the top tier candidates."
Dodd could be what the Democratic party needs in 2008, said former Danbury Mayor
James Dyer
, a Democrat.
"The Democratic party needs a coherent message, and he can deliver that message," Dyer said. "He has run around the country for a long time helping other candidates. Those are the roots of a presidential campaign."
Dodd, the son of Sen. Thomas Dodd, was elected to the Senate in 1980 after serving three terms in the House. He told the Associated Press that he realizes he can't spend too much time mulling over the prospect of running for president before he makes a decision.
"If you have any thoughts of doing it, you ought to make up your mind pretty quickly because the window closes," Dodd said.